I've worked with students
in various professional capacities for several years. While completing my
Associate degree I was employed in the library at Southwestern Michigan
College. After earning my Associate and Bachelor degrees I had the opportunity
to continue working with college students as the Special Populations Advisor at
SMC. There I learned invaluable information about the issues facing students
with disabilities and developed a passion for advocating for the rights of
students in general. Upon graduating with my Master's degree I began looking
for a way to further serve students by utilizing my newly-minted counseling
skills. The TRIO Student Support Services program (called EXCEL) at SMC needed
a new counselor and I jumped at the opportunity to provide the kind of
wraparound services that TRIO students receive. Providing career and personal
counseling, academic advising, educational workshops, college success courses,
and many other student development opportunities to help TRIO students achieve their
goals was, and continues to be, very rewarding. I joined the staff at Glen Oaks
Community College in 2011 as the TRIO SSS Project Advisor and became Director
in January 2014. It’s been great fun helping to get TRIO SSS started at GOCC,
and I look forward to continuing to serve our students!

TRIO Philosophy:

Along the way to your
degree, there will be bumps in the road – but we are here to help you Turn Roadblocks Into Opportunities! Your active
participation in TRIO SSS will help ensure that you are empowered by and
engaged with your journey toward academic, professional, and personal success.

While in my undergrad, I worked at Kalamazoo Valley Community College in
various positions that all involved helping students. I worked in the
tutoring and testing center for a total of four years and learned just
how important it was to get students the academic help they needed. Then
I moved on to work with the Admissions Office at KVCC where I conducted
campus tours and organized and facilitated outreach activities geared
towards getting high school students excited for college. Additionally, I
worked at the Student Services desk, which helped students receive the
information on what services were available to them. I have been
involved in TRIO SSS since 2011! I have seen first-hand how TRIO
can help students realize their educational and career goals, as well as
reach their full potential outside of the classroom. TRIO truly does
WORK, if you are involved and ask any and all questions that you want
answered, or even if you admit that you don't have any questions to ask,
TRIO can help you. I am passionate about helping students, and always
will be.

TRIO Philosophy:

I believe that knowing what support services are available to help students be successful is step #1. TRIO Student Support Services will help students make those first steps in receiving that knowledge. “Knowledge is power.” -Sir Francis Bacon

Bachelor of Arts and Science, English with Emphasis on Practical Writing - Western Michigan University, 2011.

In Progress- Master of Arts in Communication with Emphasis in New Media- Spring Arbor University

Professional Background:

I graduated from Western Michigan University in 2011, but I also took classes at Kalamazoo Valley Community College. During my time at Western, I worked at the main library, Waldo Library, at the Science Reference Desk. I answered a wide variety of questions and assisted patrons with research, finding books, or even navigating the many resources at Western. During my senior year at Western, I also worked with Communities In Schools of Kalamazoo (CIS), a non-profit that works within the Kalamazoo Public Schools with K-12 students with a goal to connect students with resources to succeed and graduate. My internship with CIS & work within the library awakened a passion to support students in their education and help provide resources for their success. I was hired as the TRIO Student Support Services Senior Secretary at Glen Oaks Community College in October 2011. In December 2013 I was promoted to the Retention Coordinator/Advisor position. I never envisioned myself as an advisor, but I love working more closely with students and helping them reach their goals!

TRIO Philosophy:

I believe that one of the keys to providing quality student services is good communication with the students to ensure that their needs are met efficiently and effectively.